


The Light of a Soul

by angelisthebest



Category: Huang Renjun - Fandom, Lee Donghyuck - Fandom, NCT, NCT Dream, Na Jaemin - Fandom, Park Jisung - Fandom, Renjun - Fandom, Renmin - Fandom, haechan - Fandom, jaemin - Fandom
Genre: Angst, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-14
Updated: 2019-10-29
Packaged: 2020-12-16 03:51:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 4,329
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21029804
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/angelisthebest/pseuds/angelisthebest
Summary: ‘I woke up not knowing what the fuck was going on, and then I met you, and now I don’t know what the fuck is going on even more.’





	1. Chapter 1

### chapter 1

###    
Renjun woke up to a bright, shining light glaring right into his eyes, blinding him temporarily. It took a few moments for his eyesight to clear, but when it did, he was staring up at a white ceiling that was almost as bright and blinding as the light. Renjun blinked thrice before turning his head to the side, trying to find something that would help him figure out where he was. To his left, there was a bedside table with nothing on top of it. He turned his head to the other side, and in the corner of the room was a small red armchair. Was he in a bedroom? He wasn’t sure, but all he knew was that it was definitely not _his_ bedroom.  
  
Flattening out his hands against the material of... whatever he was laying on, Renjun felt something soft and cold, and he figured he was probably on a bed. He grabbed what he assumed - or well, hoped to be the sheets in between his fingers, trying to recall if he had a single memory of any of his surroundings. Nothing seemed to come to mind, but for some reason, everything around him felt... unusually familiar. _Especially_ the sheets.  
  
Renjun’s body felt almost completely stiff, making it hard for him to sit up or even move, for that matter. He started slowly moving around his toes, feet, legs then arms, until eventually he felt like he had regained conciseness and control of his own body, then sitting up. Nothing much was different about the room now that he could fully see it, all that was different was the large, grey door standing in front of him. Oh, and the random boy sitting on the edge of his bed.   
  
If Renjun’s throat hadn’t felt as dry as a bag of coal, he probably would’ve let out a very ugly scream that he instantly would’ve regretted. But since he physically was incapable of doing that, he resorted to grabbing the pillow that was sitting behind him and holding it up in a defensive position. Not exactly a grand choice of weaponry, he admits, but it would do. If worse comes to worse, he could always shove a handful of feathers down the stranger’s throat. Like his best friend, Hyuck, always used to say, anything can be a weapon if your mind is fucked up enough.   
  
‘Is that supposed to be your version of protection?’ the stranger questioned, eyeing the pillow with a smirk plastered across his toned features. Renjun couldn’t lie, the boy was _insanely_ attractive. Attractive enough to make Renjun hate him, that’s for sure.   
  
‘I’m not going to hurt you, Renjun.’ the stranger spoke again, but Renjun wasn’t buying it. Who was this guy? Why was he here? Why did he know his name but Renjun didn’t know his? What did he want? How did he get in? Renjun may not have had answers to any of those questions, but one thing he did know was that he couldn’t trust a word the stranger said.   
  
‘Where am I?’ Renjun asked cautiously, almost physically flinching at the way his voice sounded. It was extremely low and gravelly, definitely not sounding the way he remembered it did.   
  
‘Severance Hospital, Seoul, South Korea.’ The brown-haired stranger replied, the playful look he wore fading, now replaced with seriousness.   
  
Renjun’s eyes widened at his words. The hospital? Why? And why doesn’t he remember ever being admitted? Questions ran all through his head once again, and when he looked down at his wrist to check if he was wearing a hospital bracelet to confirm the boy’s words, he noticed that he wasn’t wearing his usual clothes; _he was wearing a hospital gown_. ‘Why am I here?’   
  
The stranger sighed before extending his hand out for a handshake, which Renjun not-so-politely declined.   
  
‘I’m Jaemin. Na Jaemin. Nice to meet you.’   



	2. 2

### chapter 2

###    
‘I’m Jaemin. Na Jaemin. Nice to meet you.’ Renjun furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, his mouth making a small ‘o’ shape. ‘And how the fuck does that answer my question?’  
  
‘God, you’re a feisty one, aren’t you?’ Jaemin scoffed. ‘I’ll explain everything after.’  
  
_ After? _ Renjun thought to himself. It was like the more Jaemin spoke, the more confused Renjun became, and it only ended up frustrating him even more. Who the fuck is this guy and why is he like a walking embodiment of a puzzle?  
  
Jaemin moved around until he was standing up, Renjun’s eyes cautiously following every move he made. ‘After we get out of here, of course.’  
  
_ ‘Excuse me? _ I’m not going anywhere with you, buddy.’ Renjun said, letting out an astonished laugh. Who did this guy think he was? Did he seriously think Renjun would just up and leave with him, when he knew absolutely nothing about him? Did he think this was a romance film? Sure, the guy was attractive, but he wasn’t _ that _ attractive.  
  
‘It’s up to you, but keep in mind i’m the only one who knows anything about why you’re here.’ Jaemin replied as he pulled on his black leather jacket. Renjun scoffed to himself. Maybe this really _ was _ a romance movie.  
  
Closing his eyes, rubbing his temple in frustration, Renjun thought about Jaemin’s words. What if he really was the only one who had answers to all of Renjun’s questions? Plus, Renjun couldn’t even remember the last time he saw any of his family members, let alone where any of them lived.  
  
Renjun weighed out the pros and cons.  
  
Pros: this guy might know something about what he seems to have forgotten, and he might know where Renjun’s parents are.  
  
Cons: Jaemin might end up being a serial murderer and Renjun would be his sixth victim.  
  
‘You coming or not?’ Jaemin’s voice snapped Renjun out of his thoughts, making him jolt.  
  
‘I need clothes.’ Renjun said as an answer, making the corners of Jaemin’s mouth turn up into a small smile. Renjun didn’t smile back, but just as he was about to get off the bed, a loud growling sound came from his tummy. Jaemin’s smile grew wider at the sound, and if it weren’t for the fact that Renjun felt like utter death, he would’ve shoved that pillow right into Jaemin’s smug face. But, instead of doing that, he opened up his mouth to speak again.  
  
‘And food.’  
  
Jaemin chuckled at that. ‘I’ll get you whatever you want, grumpy pants.’  



	3. 3

### chapter 3

###    
Getting out of the hospital was a lot less difficult than Renjun expected it to be. The nurses and doctors didn’t even bat an eye in his nor Jaemin’s direction, which - although he found it quite strange- made him relieved.   
  
Jaemin had taken Renjun down to the Lost and Found bin, where he gave Renjun a set of clothes that seemed to fit him perfectly. Renjun had asked Jaemin if it was okay for them to be taking some random person’s clothes when the person might come looking for them, but all Jaemin did was shrug, and Renjun thought, _ well, I can’t argue with that. _   
  
Everything around Renjun seemed familiar, but completely new at the same time. It wasn’t the first time he had been to the hospital, but for some reason, most of the memories he had before he woke up seemed to be either fuzzy or just... gone. And it was _ killing _ him that he didn’t know why.   
  
‘Can you please tell me why I was in the hospital now? And why I don’t remember anything?’ Renjun asked while he and Jaemin were walking out the hospital doors. It was the first time Renjun noticed that it was actually dark outside, and that made him question whether or not it was a good idea to leave with Jaemin even more.   
  
The weather outside was quite cold with a light breeze, and the sky was almost clear, except for the shining stars and bright moon painting the darkness. The cold pricked at Renjun’s skin, making him shiver slightly, which Jaemin noticed.   
  
‘Maybe we should’ve taken that Hello Kitty jacket from the Lost and Found after all.’ He chuckled.   
  
Renjun glared at him for his remark before replying in a snarky tone. ‘I’m fine, just not used to the cold.’ It was the first time Renjun really noticed how _ tall _ Jaemin was compared to him, and it made him feel even more inferior.   
  
‘You’ve lived here for years,’ Jaemin scoffed, his eyes making their way to Renjun’s face. ‘how come you’re not used to the cold yet?’   
  
‘I haven’t felt cold in a while. And I don’t fucking know why because you refuse to fucking tell me.’ Renjun replied through gritted teeth, avoiding Jaemin’s gaze.   
  
Jaemin laughed, wondering how such a tiny person could have so much pent up rage. ‘I’ll tell you everything once we get to the diner.’   
  
‘Diner? Really?’ Renjun questioned Jaemin’s choice with an amused scoff.   
  
‘Yeah, I have a friend who works there and we’ll be spending the night at his place.’ Jaemin replied nonchalantly.   
  
Renjun’s eyes grew wide; Jaemin wanted him to actually _ stay the night _ with him? Was he crazy? Actually, scratch that. He was definitely crazy.   
  
‘Woah there, buddy, I’m not spending the night with you. I don’t know a single thing about you.’   
  
‘You know my name,’ Jaemin shrugged. ‘That’s a single thing.’   
  
‘It’s not enough for me to stay with you throughout the night. Plus, I don’t know anything about this friend of yours either. I’m not stupid nor gullible enough to just go with everything you say.’ Renjun replied, obviously pissed off and done with Jaemin’s shit. Sure, he wanted to know what happened to him, but it wasn’t worth dealing with this asshole any longer.   
  
Jaemin grinned, making Renjun’s already-boiling blood boil even more. But, Jaemin couldn’t help it. Seeing Renjun all fired up was cute.   
  
‘Alright, smartass, but where else do you plan on staying?’   
  
‘With my parents?’ Renjun replied, his tone blunt and plain.   
  
Jaemin sighed. ‘Come with me.’ He said before speeding up his pace. Renjun rolled his eyes, stopping on the side of the sidewalk. Why did Jaemin think Renjun would be at his beck and call and follow every order he gave when he _ already _ made it clear he wasn’t exactly his biggest fan and that he didn’t trust him one bit?   
  
Letting out an annoyed sigh, Renjun started jogging to keep up with Jaemin. ‘Slow down, daddy longlegs. Not everyone can make bigass steps.’   
  
‘Ew. Never call me that again.’ Jaemin said, cringing, but with a small smile on his lips.   
  
And, for the first time since he woke up, - after making sure Jaemin wasn’t looking, of course - Renjun actually smiled.   



	4. 4

### chapter 4

###    
Renjun followed behind Jaemin for what felt like hours, his feet eventually starting to ache after a while. He and Jaemin hadn’t really spoken for most of the walk, partly because Renjun didn’t know what to say, but mainly because he still didn’t trust him, and he wanted to remain cautious and aware of his surroundings; to make sure Jaemin wasn’t taking him to some torture dungeon hiding behind a brick wall that could be accessed by tapping a certain secret code into the bricks.  
  
_ Wow _, Renjun thought to himself. _ I really do spend too much time with Hyuck. _  
  
‘Whatcha thinking about, sweet cheeks?’ Jaemin asked suddenly, interrupting Renjun’s train of thought.  
  
Renjun rolled his eyes at the petname. _ What a flirt_. ‘How about you tell me where we’re going and maybe I’ll give you the honor of hearing about what goes on in my head? Sound fair?’  
  
‘Oh, cool down, grumpy pants,’ Jaemin said with a small laugh. ‘We’re almost there. It’s just around the corner.’  
  
Renjun followed where Jaemin’s hand was gesturing towards, and suddenly he was hit with the realization that he knew _ exactly _ where he was. He recognized the road they were walking along, recognized that this was the way to his house. It looked the same way he now remembered it always did, all except for the now-closed ice cream parlor he and Hyuck used to go to after school. He felt a sharp pang in his chest at the sight of it, not only because now his and Hyuck’s hangout was gone, but also because he became aware of how _ long _ he must’ve been away for.  
  
Jaemin and Renjun turned around the corner, and Renjun’s house came into view. It was like the sight of his house brought back every memory he had that was related to it; every memory he had that was related to his parents.  
  
Renjun remembered playing in the backyard from ages 4-10, spending hours on the playstation with Hyuck until his mom called them down for dinner, sleeping in his parents’ bed after waking up from a nightmare. He remembered all the times he broke down from all the stress of school and work and life, and how his mother always held him while he sobbed his heart out. He remembered how safe he felt at home, how safe he felt with his parents.  
  
‘Why is it so.... dark?’ Renjun breathed out quietly, the heavy feeling pressing on his chest and the tears threatening to fall from his eyes making it difficult to speak. He remembered how his mother always said that every night, she would leave the lights outside on so that if Renjun were ever to get lost on his way home late at night, he would be able to find them again. But now, those lights were gone. And that scared the _ shit _ out of him.  
  
‘No one lives here anymore, Renjun.’ Jaemin replied, a remorseful tone in his voice. ‘They moved away when they lost hope.’  
  
Renjun’s head snapped away from the view of the house at those words. ‘Lost hope of what?’  
  
Jaemin gave Renjun a look full of pity, which only worried Renjun even more.  
  
‘Lost hope of what, Jaemin?’ He asked, more urgently this time.  
  
Letting out a sad sigh, Jaemin looked down at the sidewalk before replying.  
  
‘Lost hope of you ever waking up again.’  



	5. 5

### chapter 5

###    
‘Waking up again? When was I even asleep?’ Renjun asked, his face moving from one emotion to the next, the same way a mime’s would. Pain, sadness, confusion, fear, worry; pretty much all the bad emotions a single person is capable of feeling all at once. And the longer Jaemin took to answer, the more scared Renjun grew.  
  
What if Jaemin didn’t actually know anything about what happened to Renjun and this was all just a ploy to get Renjun to trust and follow him until eventually he dumped him in a boiling cauldron and cooked his bones into a stew? What if this would be Renjun’s only chance to escape? _ Damn, _ Renjun thought. _ Now would definitely be a good time for the aliens to abduct me. _  
  
‘How much longer until we get there?’ Renjun whined, feeling the soles of his feet ache more and more with each step. He didn’t know how long he was asleep for, but what he did know was that his body was definitely not equipped well enough to be walking this long.  
  
A small smile pulled at the corners of Jaemin’s lips; he was finding Renjun’s whining and complaining exceptionally amusing. And - dare he say it - maybe even a little cute. ‘Not much longer now, maybe ten minutes or so.’  
  
Renjun let out an exasperated sigh. He was hungry, confused, and way too tired for someone who seems to have been asleep long enough to forget his memories. All he wanted was answers to his questions and a big, fat, juicy burger. With french fries on the side. And some ketchup. And a Cola.  
  
Entranced by the thoughts of food running through his head, Renjun didn’t even notice the small rock on the sidewalk, which made him trip. Luckily, Jaemin was right in front of him, so naturally, Renjun reached out to grab him so he wouldn’t fall face first onto the sidewalk. And naturally, you’d expect someone in Jaemin’s position to catch you and help keep you from falling, right?  
  
Wrong.  
  
Well, at least in their case.  
  
The second Jaemin noticed Renjun’s hand reaching out to grab onto him, he jumped out of the way, causing Renjun to fall right onto his face. Ouch.  
  
‘What. The. FUCK JAEMIN?’ Renjun shouted, his cheek still pressed firmly against the cold concrete of the sidewalk, muffling his words.  
  
‘I’m SORRY,’ Jaemin said, his tone apologetic, yet still obviously trying to hide his laugh. ‘I DON’T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED!’  
  
Renjun groaned in pain as he pressed his hands against the sidewalk and slowly lifted himself up. ‘I fell on my fucking face, that’s what happened. And it’s all because of YOU, jackass.’  
  
‘Sorry I... I don’t really... like to be touched... ahaha....’ Jaemin laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.  
  
‘God,’ Renjun scoffed, rolling his eyes. ‘You could’ve pushed that aside for two seconds so I wouldn’t bruise my face, asshole.’  
  
‘I thought I was jackass,’ Jaemin laughed, stopping after seeing the glare Renjun was sending his way.  
  
‘You’re both.’ He said, his eyes throwing daggers at Jaemin’s face.  
  
Jaemin let his arm drop back down to his side as he let out a defeated sigh. ‘I didn’t know the reason you were touching me was because you were falling, okay? If I had I would have helped you.’  
  
‘Yeah, yeah, jackass,’ Renjun said, pushing past Jaemin so that he was walking ahead of him. ‘Now please get us to this diner before I eat you.’  



	6. 6

### chapter 6

###    
By the time Renjun and Jaemin made it to the diner, Renjun had come up with probably fifty different questions he wanted - no, _ needed _ Jaemin to answer. And he didn’t care if he had to set someone’s house on fire to make him, he could just pin it on Jaemin after all. One of the perks of being a small, weak-looking boy? Having people think you’re the most innocent and incapable being they’ve ever seen, even though you’re the complete opposite. __  
  
‘So, where’s that friend of yours who supposedly works here?’ Renjun sighed, sliding into the booth opposite of Jaemin.   
  
The place was your basic diner; red cushion booths, a jukebox, very bright white lights that could probably burn your skin if you stood directly under the beam long enough. It was unsurprisingly empty, except for the waiters and a couple sitting in one of the booths behind Renjun and Jaemin’s. A young girl and boy, sitting next to each other on one side of the booth, shoving their tongues down each other’s throats.   
  
Hets.   
  
Probably in the back,’ Jaemin replied, moving around to stretch out his arms, making his extremely well-defined muscles peak through the leather of his jacket. Which, by the way, Renjun not-so-successfully tried to look away from, making Jaemin smirk. ‘Like what you see?’   
  
Renjun’s eyes moved from Jaemin’s arms to the back of his head, rolling them at Jaemin’s remark. ‘You mean the burger they’re making over there? Yeah actually, I like it very much.’   
  
‘Hello there gentlemen, may I take your order?’ An unfamiliar voice interrupted, making both Renjun and Jaemin’s heads snap up to see who it came from.   
  
Renjun noticed how Jaemin’s eyes grew wide when they landed on the owner of the voice’s face and how quickly he jumped out of his seat to wrap his arms around the tall boy’s frame in a bear hug, and figured that that was probably the friend he meant.   
  
‘“Don’t like to be touched” my ass.’ Renjun muttered under his breath.   
  
‘Bro!’ Jaemin exclaimed as he let go of his friend to look him in the face. ‘I haven’t seen you in ages, how have you been?!’   
  
Renjun cringed. Why did Jaemin have to be so fucking loud?   
  
‘I’ve been great, man! How are you?’ The stranger replied, a bright smile enlightening his features. The boy was insanely tall and pretty broad, but had the face of a child. It was almost funny to Renjun, except for the fact that the boy was obviously younger than him yet way taller.   
  
Jaemin and his friend continued to talk - very loudly, Renjun might add - for a while before Renjun cleared his throat, immediately catching Jaemin’s attention.   
  
‘Oh,’ Jaemin said, the smile on his lips now fading. ‘This is Renjun. You know, the one I told you about?’   
  
The stranger nodded before replying. ‘The... special case?’   
  
Renjun’s ears perked up at that. What did he mean by special case? And when did Jaemin have the time to tell his friend about Renjun when Renjun hasn’t seen Jaemin use a phone ever since the minute they met?   
  
Jaemin closed his eyes, rubbing his forehead in disappointment after what the stranger said. Obviously, he hadn’t meant for Renjun to hear about that... nickname he seems to have given him.   
  
‘Yeah, thanks a lot, buddy,’ Jaemin whispered to his friend, but Renjun heard it anyways. Like he said before, _ loud _. __  
  
They sat in pain-staking awkward silence for a few moments, which Renjun hated every minute of. It was like the more time he spent with Jaemin, the more he hated his life.   
  
Jaemin sighed, before gesturing towards his friend. ‘Renjun, this is my good friend, Park Jisung.’   



	7. 7

### chapter 7

###    
‘Uh... hi?’ Renjun said, and Jaemin visibly cringed at how awkward his tone was.  
  
Jisung laughed in the same awkward tone before replying. ‘Hi, I’m Jisung... but you... already knew that! Thanks to Jaemin... and I’m just gonna... shut up now...’  
  
‘That would be much preferred.’ Jaemin said, slapping Jisung on the back in a what-was-meant-to-look-friendly way, but Renjun could tell it wasn’t, since Jisung basically half-doubled over in pain.  
  
If it was that easy, Renjun would’ve just gotten up and left, ending the unbearable suffering he’s been going through ever since he woke up. All this to figure out what happened to him, and Jaemin hasn’t told him a single thing apart from the fact that his parents weren’t in the city anymore. And that definitely didn’t make anything clearer.  
  
‘So,’ Jaemin said, clapping his hands very loudly, making Renjun jump. ‘Since we’ve gotten past that, Jisung is going to be getting us some burgers while I explain things to Renjun.’  
  
‘I’m not your slave, Nana. I don’t have to listen to you.’ Jisung replied, his eyes squinted. Renjun smiled to himself at hearing the nickname. He couldn’t tell if he found it embarrassing, cute, or both.  
  
The wide smile that Jaemin always seemed to wear disappeared, turning into a glare pointed towards Jisung’s face, which - apparently - was enough to make Jisung laugh nervously before shooting a finger gun in Jaemin’s direction and turning on his heel, making his way behind the counter.  
  
‘Well that was... something,’ Renjun sighed, turning his head away from where Jisung had gone to look up at Jaemin. ‘He the guy we’re meant to be staying with?’  
  
Jaemin replied with a nod, slipping back in the booth.  
  
‘God help me.’  
  
‘Hah,’ Jaemin laughed, shooting another one of his pretty smiles at Renjun. Which definitely didn’t make his heart jump. Definitely not. ‘I think this is one thing that God can’t help you with.’  
  
That made Renjun’s lips curve up slightly. He must admit, he was starting to grow quite... comfortable around Jaemin. Well, so to speak. At least he had gotten past the stage of wanting to strangle him at every given moment. That, Renjun thought, was some pretty good progress.  
  
A few moments later, Jisung came back with two plates with what probably was no more than ten fries, and the smallest burger Renjun had ever seen. Jisung might as well have given him a cow’s toe and it would’ve been equivalent to the small piece of meat smothered between two buns and a handful of lettuce sitting in front of him.  
  
Jaemin could see the disappointed look on Renjun’s face, and felt a small ache in his heart. The way Renjun’s lower lip jutted out in a pout, how his shoulders fell at the sight of the plate, how his eyes glimmered with sadness almost could’ve ended wars. Or at least, if Jaemin was president it would.  
  
‘Here,’ Jaemin quietly said, sliding his plate to Renjun’s side with one hand. ‘I’m not hungry anyways.’  
  
Renjun looked away from the plate and then up at Jaemin, tilting his head in confusion, the same way a puppy would. Another small action that vamped up the strange yet familiar feeling in Jaemin’s heart. It made Jaemin’s breath hitch, and God, how he wished it didn’t.  
  
‘Are you sure? One will be enough, I think. I’m pretty small.’ Renjun asked softly, making Jaemin giggle.  
  
‘It’s fine. You haven’t eaten for a lot longer than i haven’t.’ He replied.  
  
That made Renjun’s ears perk up, suddenly remembering why they were there in the first place. ‘So... Ready to tell me everything you’ve neglected to tell me so far?’  
  
A sigh left Jaemin as he leaned back into the booth. Right. He was meant to tell Renjun what happened to him.  
  
‘Do you want the long version or the short one?’ He asked, intertwining his fingers together and placing them on the cold metal of the table.  
  
Renjun hummed before taking the bun off both of his burgers, placing both patties in one burger and squeezing ketchup out of the bottle and onto the pieces of meat. ‘Long.’  
  
Of _ course _ Renjun would want the more time consuming, more confusing and more tiring version. Jaemin couldn’t blame him, obviously, but he still wished he could get this over with as soon as possible. And the longer the story was, the more questions Renjun would have. Questions that Jaemin might not be able to answer.  
  
‘Alright then,’ Jaemin sighed, sitting up straight so he could look Renjun in the eyes before saying what he said next. ‘Buckle up, sweet cheeks, because you’re in for a long, long ride.’  



End file.
